Map of the Chimney Tops 2 fire at Gatlinburg, TN

Briefing map of the Chimney Tops 2 Fire. Prepared by Great Smoky Mountains National Park November 29, 2016 for the November 30 day shift. The green text was added by Wildfire Today. Click to enlarge.

As far as we know this is the first publicly available map of the Chimney Tops 2 Fire that burned from Great Smoky Mountains National Park into Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. The incident management team reports it has burned 15,653 acres.

We are not aware of an official estimate of the number of structures destroyed in the fire since Tuesday morning’s report from the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency (TEMA) of approximately 100 homes in Sevier County Tennessee having been either damaged or destroyed.

On Wednesday a Type 1 Incident Management Team run by Mike Dueitt assumed command of the Chimney Tops 2 Fire. Teams like this are made up of federal and state interagency team members from across the country who collaboratively manage wildland fires and other natural disasters.

The evacuation of Pigeon Forge has been lifted but is still in effect for Gatlinburg.

Firefighters will be aided on Wednesday by rain. The NWS predicts a 73 to 100 percent chance of precipitation into the evening with accumulations of about a third of an inch.

Donations and actual help is much better than prayer. We need to abandon the mythical help from the sky and do things ourselves. Prayer has never worked throughout history. BUT>>>when people actually pull together and DO something….well thats VERY effective.

Prayer affects our heart to be humbled before an Almighty God and to be yielded to His Holy Spirit’s leading to carry out the good works which He has prepared for us to do in advance as He has commissioned Christians to be His ambassadors on earth. His Holy Spirit leads our hearts to put our faith into action in many ways and one of those ways is to help others. When we depend on God to give us the strength to help others, His supernatural abilities in us bring about the miraculous which only God can do–but we must be in total dependence on Him for that to happen. One can help others in their own strength but the supernatural is not accomplished unless we depend on God. Prayer also is received by a very attentive, Holy God who works on behalf of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose. Throughout history many miraculous things have happened because of the prayers of God’s people. There is a spiritual battle taking place and Christians have the responsibility to be equipped with the armor of God and one of those pieces of armor is praying in the Spirit. Other pieces of armor for the Christian are the helmet of salvation, the breastplate of righteousness, the belt of truth, the sword of the Spirit (which is the Word of God), the shield of faith, and feet fitted with readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. Praying is what Christians do–it’s who we are. Prayer motivates us with the vision to accomplish the small and the great things for God out of a heart of love and kindness which God has placed there. Glory to God for all that He has done and that we are privileged to be a part because He has called us into His service as a part of His Kingdom’s Plan and Purpose. Blessings to you.

Blessings to you.
Out in Oregon, I watch as my heart aches for my vacation area as a child and adult from S.C., later visiting during the years.
I grieve with my coworker from Nashville.
God is in control.
As a NICU nurse in the past, I learned to trust in the great “I am.”
Prayer changes things as a two time cancer survivor knows.
Lord Jesus, be with all these suffering people.
May the necessary resources be accomplished with much love.
A-men Jesus!

Powerful words. Thank you for your response. I BELIEVE. A coworker of mine has children who live with their mom and stepdad in the area that was affected. They lost everything. Material things. For their family, as well as all others affected by this tragedy: I pray they won’t lose hope, nor faith, while on the road to recovery. Lord give them strength and help lift their burdens! Shower them with your LOVE and heavy favor during these difficult times. Most of all give them PEACE during this Christmas Season, as we celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. Amen.

Thank you so much to all of you emergency workers helping out there! Can’t say this enough. This very sincere thanks, from the bottom of my heart, goes out to everyone helping in the area; support people (family & friends) of emergency workers, the dispatchers, firefighters, police officers, sheriff deputies, medical personnel/ambulance services & hospitals, forestry services/employees, land management employees, coordinators/emergency management teams, utilities crews, road crews, air support, churches, Red Cross and other volunteers. I hope I didn’t leave anyone out. Many blessings to you all! Thank you for your hard work and dedication. ❤️️

i am sure those nearly two hundred people burned still in the hospital and the people who burned to death , nearly twenty of them also prayed. that mother who tried to escape with her children on foot and got two miles away before the fire caught them ? i am sure she was a praying woman considering her church posted and said she was recently saved. she did not get the strength to save her babies .i am sure the thousands who are displaced and without homes and jobs? i bet they prayed. prayer changed nothing for them . gods good works do nothing for them , except perhaps to motivate to give money bury them . i am sixty two years old and have recently seen that there is no place in my life, where i thought i was acting in great faith did i ever see god helped anyone who was suffering.

Such a beautiful truth very well spoken!! Thank you so much for this message and hopefully teaching somebody who is not saved or a non believer just how great his holy spirit is and how much prayer affects the lives of everyone daily.

Here in East Tennesee most tend to think the prayer is as important as rolling up your sleaves and pitching in. If the news isnt reporting it we have banded together and dug in. Nothing short of Gods Grace spared so many historically important structures in the mountain.

People of faith have an inner strength and a peace that a Greater Power will help them get through difficult times. It is a soothing, comforting knowledge that we are not alone.

If you choose not to believe in prayer and a Higher Power, that is your prerogative. You know, many an atheist or agnostic, when clenching their chest dying from a heart attack, has uttered the words “oh God”.

I do not share your opinion. As I am sure many others do not. I KNOW prayers work. My 101 year Grandmother survived this fire is one of my many proofs. I respect you have an opinion.
This Map shows what a miracle this incident was not any worse. Thanks to all the SELFLESS HEROIC Men and women fighting the fires and doing the difficult work that lies ahead. I am one of many that will keep you all in our prayers.
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Prayer enables us to lend aid and assistance even to our enemies and those that don’t believe. By doing so we heap burning coals on their heads. (Sorry for that line given the situation but its what the Bible says.)

You are so wrong, and millions of people around the world can tell you their testimonies of miracles God has performed. God bless you when you finally see proof for yourself. Oh the blessings God wants to show you!

Well, God has helped me over and over. Millions and millions and millions of people are helped and sustained by God Almighty! WE ain’t all crazy! Lol! I’m blessed beyond belief from The Lord! He always has been here for me. You need to find Him and open your heart. Just knock and He’ll come to you. It’s an awesome feeling friend…a peace that’s like…real deep. Like, you know nobody can chang you about it. You just know with all you are. Whoo-hoo! Thank you Jesus! Thank you for sending rain! 😄😄

Prayer is something that can get us through any situation however you have to have the faith that there is someone bigger than us. We were there during the fire and had to evacuate our cabin, we were on vacation. The help that came from people all around the area was unbelieveable. When you see a couple whose home was surrounded by fire and not damaged you know there is a God. Continue to pray for the people of Tennessee during this crisis.

Bill, thank you for reporting the important details that the Knoxville press is not reporting and posting a detailed map (why isn’t the press showing the map?).

It’s amazing some of the other wildfires didn’t become wind blown tree-top blazes, but downwind homes were evacuated as a precaution. However, those were primarily rural areas and not a highly developed town packed into a narrow valley. When high winds are predicted, every precaution should be taken including pre-evacuation. The weather forecast gave ample warning as can be seen on the Monday morning daily fire reports on Inciweb.

Good to see a Type 1 Incident Team is moving into Gatlinburg. They will take measures to prevent wind spread (been closely following Rock Mountain fire).

Hope authorities catch the free roaming idiots that started the fire. There will be a list of charges to keep them in prison for decades.

My heart just breaks for all of Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge. Please know you are all in my prayers. To see all that has been destroyed is so sad. The loss of life and those who are missing may God bless you all and your families.

If intentionally set..the persons who did this are Terrorists..striking fear into the population, and exacting huge efforts of our people to control and fight fire, and large amounts of our money as a country . I don’t care to split hairs whether they are foreign or AMERICAN…if caught..the harshest sentencing should apply. They have murdered, destroyed lives, destroyed properties, and killed innocent animals all for a thrill or even more insidious reasons of warped minds…we as a society need to Step UP and pay attention to those that live amongst us that may have a face just like yours…if you KNOW something..Tell someone…UNCIVILIZED actions affect us all….heck knows we as a society needs some work !! I wish to thank ALL of those lives put on the line…and my best thoughts to Gatlinburg’s people.
As a South Carolinian living within a mile of the Pinnacle Mountain Fire, I do empasize wholly, we were lucky…

I don’t even know what to say. I love Tennessee like a second home. It’s full of God’s most beautiful work. It makes me sick to my stomach to think of it being destroyed. Remember this quote ” you never know how strong you can be until strong is the only choice you have”. God bless all of you.

Hi Bill. I’m sure you’ve probably seen this by now, but according to a report put up by InciWeb around five hours ago filed under the Chimney Tops 2 fire, it’s looking like 700 structures destroyed (300 in Gatlinburg, and 400 in surrounding areas in Sevier County). Keep up the good work with the site.

Thank you for posting this critical information. I shared it on FB, with this info:

GATLINBURG FIRE MAP. Released Wednesday AM. Red indicates the burn areas. Directly below the “A” in “Gatlinburg” is the downtown area; and where Rt 321 turns into East Parkway. The Bypass is the squiggly green line by the “G”. Near the “B” is where Glades Rd heads up from Rt 321 (East Parkway) into the Arts community.

Thank you for this! My husband is out there with a engine crew. It helps me to be able to see what he sees! God bless all of the firefighters and their families back home. Praying for all these people loosing their homes and lifes… ❤ Praying for some much needed rain!🌧🌧🌧🌧🌧

Looking for any information about our neighbors Ken and Ana, who lost their beautiful permanent home on Chestnut Drive, just on the other side of Whiley Oakley Drive, where our house used to be, turned to ashes now… He called me at 7.40 pm on Monday, when fire started surrounding our houses from all sides, asking me if we were ready to leave the house. I said “yes”, we just grabbed our computers and purses, said goodbuy to our lovely cabin, which was our vacation home and very welcoming place to our friends and family, closed the door and left. At that moment bunch of fire trucks and police cars were coming to our driveway, responding our 911 call… Driving one and half mile to the Welcome center in a dense smoke and sparkling fire was really scary… I was thinking about Ken, his phone call was ended unexpectedly, when I was asking him about them, if they were ready to evacuate. The last I heard from him “Natalie!” We tried to call back to both their phone numbers multiple times, no reply so far. We are praying for them and hope they could escape that nightmare on Monday night. Please, spread the word, I wish to be able to thank him for that call, for being so thoughtful and considered! Hope they are ok and in good spirit.

I am not sure how far is your house from ours and if yours was affected as bad, but I am sure you know the house I was talking about: Whiley Oakley turns to left and Chestnut goes straight, Ken&Ana’s house was just there on the right side, already fully and nicely decorated, a lot of lights, figurines, flags, ornaments outside etc., such a beautiful place! That was their home. Wish to know how they’re doing, hope they are well, as it possible at this hard time.

My condolence and prayers goes out to the families that is suffering the loss of there loved ones. And for the ones that is still searching for there lovedones. Gatlinburg can be rebuilt, lives can’t be brought back. My heart breaks for the lovedones that lost there family members so sad.

The Sevier County website below has a map of the structures and land damaged by the fires in which you can search for a specific address and see the structure. It is constantly being updated and is extremely informative.http://www.seviercountytn.org

Thank God his father came from Ohio!
God has a plan, and this is so hard.
A-men, thank you Jesus for your faithfulness.
The little girl he called his angel is now one in heaven with her sister and mama.
In His Name.

i don’t like to speculate or be critical at such a tragic time- I know I read where the Fire chief or someone in charge said that they did the best they could.
It’s heartbreaking and personal for me as we spent every summer vacation here,a week in this town and roamed all over on foot from one end to the other.Its been a long time- 33 years I think- and I know there are changes I wouldn’t recognize but looking at the photos and a Google street view,I still see some iconic landmarks that remain.
I remember being there summer of 1980 when it was so hot the entire summer and dry- my dad made the observation just in passing after hearing about a campfire that got out of hand but was extinguished- he said the way the town is situated and at the time,the routes in and out were just 2 lanes-and I think,two routes out north ( the spur and main highway to Pigeon Forge) and to the south which goes into the Park- it would be a nightmare evacuating people.nevertheless he said at the first mention of a fire out of hand in those mountains, he would be headed out of there the opposite way,no matter which direction and no matter where the fire might be.I see why he felt that way now.

It’s amazing how were told to turn to God to fix the problems he presumably made (or at best) let happen.

You want to deal with fire like this? Have a well-funded local fire department and well-funded federal emergency response measures. That and fight the climate change driving extreme weather and associated natural disasters.

Just from a personal standpoint, the reason God allowed this wildfire to happen is because He has given mankind the gift of free will. Not a bunch of robots here on earth, guaranteed to go to Heaven upon our death. When God decides upon a wildfire, He will send it through lightning, not a couple of despicable teenagers with a book of matches or a lighter. This fire was ‘human caused’, not an act of God. Or that’s how I look at it. And I agree, a well-funded local fire department and a well-funded federal emergency response system are paramount in helping to put out fires and save lives. However, it’s never going to hurt to say a prayer, and look to the skies for some God-given fire control, rain…..